Monday, February 28, 2011

Postpartum Depression

Postpartum Depression and Anxiety is much much more frequent than Psychosis. 1 in 10 women have Postpartum Depression!

Over 2/3 of new mothers develop "the baby blues"

It is caused by a chemical imbalance in the brain. Hormone levels drop drastically after birth.﻿ It is also proven that if these hormones are off it will cause depression, moodiness, etc.Hormones go crazy during pregnancy and remain pretty crazy for a while after-wards until they can reach homeostasis.It can also be caused by plain old stress and fatigue.Not to mention the anxiety of how to care for such a small , fragile baby. Having a baby is not a guarantee that you will have PPD (Postpartum Depression).

Dad's can get Postpartum Depression too.This could be because theyfeel left out after the birth of the child , and need to adjust tolife with a newborn.Postpartum depression begins with anxiety and can end in tragedy, witha whole spectrum of blue in between.

Postpartum Psychosis is very very rare but the chance of getting it increases if you have bipolar disorder but really any type of mental illness but especially BPD.

Postpartum Psychosis is not equal to Postpartum Depression.

One of the most important things for a new mother is : Get as much sleep as possible.

Symptoms of Postpartum Psychosis:-Paranoia-Hallucinations (hearing voices urging the new mother to kil herself or her child)-Severe isomnia-Loss of appetite-Anxiety and-Depression